Royal Oak to renovate its property management code

The Royal Oak City Commission has voted to renovate the city’s Property Maintenance Code.
Staff will work to create solutions, which will streamline the process for residents making home improvements to have “a little more discretion with the building department,” Mayor Pro Tem David Poulton said at the Commission meeting Monday.
Staff are expected to present recommendations at the strategic planning session set for Jan. 18.
The Property Maintenance Code regulates how residents should reasonably maintain their property within the city. Commissioner Kyle DuBuc agreed it’s a good focus for the commission, citing an example where a family experienced code enforcement headaches.
“My fundamental issue, without going into any of the details of it, is that had they done nothing there would have been no violations," DuBuc said. "There is no doubt, even part way into the project, the home looks significantly better than it did."
He said fines and difficulties with the city are “disincentives” for residents, who can't afford contractors.
Mayor Jim Ellison asked Code Enforcement to identify problem areas and find ways to "massage some of those codes.”
"They have to try to enforce them evenly across the board, whether it's self-performed work by a homeowner or a contractor is doing it," Ellison said.
"It may take longer than what our code may allow, but this would give the Building Department some latitude to try to tie into a schedule that the homeowner provides themselves. If the homeowner runs past his own self-imposed dates, then that is where we need to pick up the enforcement," Ellison said.
Improving the code may or may not improve relations between residents and building officials, because code enforcement officials usually don't get involved unless someone lodges a complaint. Commissioner Peggy Goodwin said homeowners aren't happy when approached by code enforcers.
"It's not because they are rude, it's because they are doing their job," she said.